We are truly delighted, with this retreat... and each day, brings its visitors.
— Mary Lincoln, 1862Exhibits at the Visitor Education Center
Upcoming Exhibit - Can You Walk Away? Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking in the United States
To commemorate the 150th Anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation, the Cottage will open "Can You Walk Away?" in February 2012. This special exhibit will challenge perceptions of slavery in America today and raise awareness of a growing humanitarian crisis. By posing the question, "Can you walk away?" this exhibit will inspire people to engage with the modern abolitionist movement and to see that slavery is an ongoing issue that requires big thinking and direct action, just as it did in Lincoln's time.
OPENING FEBRUARY 17, 2012
Featured Exhibits
The Robert H. Smith Visitor Education Center contains four self-guided, permanent exhibits: Wartime Washington, Lincoln the Commander-in-Chief, Lincoln Family at the Soldiers' Home, and History of the Soldiers' Home. Civil war prints and maps line the main corridor and interactive gallery in the Visitor Education Center, a sustainably rennovated 1905 Beaux Arts style building that was awarded LEED Gold certification in 2009.
Lincoln’s Toughest Decisions Gallery – Award Winning!
In this innovative interactive gallery, visitors sit around a large wooden table, evoking Lincoln’s Cabinet table. The program allows users to explore digitzed letters, documents, and archival materials to help them decide how they, as a member of Lincoln's Cabinet, should advise Lincoln during discussions about critical issues like the Emancipation Proclamation in 1862, the military turning point of the Civil War in 1864, and the strategy for Lincoln's reelection in 1864. Touchscreen technology allows visitors to select and magnify individual items on their desktop.
The experience may be adapted for visitors of all ages and may be used individually or booked as a group program. This gallery received the American Association of Museums 2008 Silver MUSE Award for outstanding interactive media.
